Afghanistan - A Tour Of Duty

Now this was something completely different! Last Wednesday one of our club members, Malcolm Robb, gave us a privileged view inside the armed forces on active duty through his superb images and commentary.

He started by charting his military history from his days in Sandhurst, training to be an officer – tough going - just the thought of pounding over Pen y Fan in full kit!! Then on to his first commands before starting the next phase of his training - as a helicopter pilot. You can tell that Mal loves helicopters – and that’s what made this so fascinating – his expertise was infectious! We were taken through simulated combat – war games – to real areas of conflict culminating in Afghanistan! This was real life on active service – and we had a front line view through the windows of Mal’s helicopter. Not only that – we also saw images of foot patrols through the streets of Afghan towns and cities with the soldiers talking to locals and befriending the children. Very difficult to convey the atmosphere, the sense of danger and the comradeship among the troops that Mal conjured up for us in a blog like this – but it sure was there!

Thank you Mal for sharing this part of your life with us! A really superb evening – made me for one have even more respect for the men and women who risk their lives to protect our freedom!